FALLING ENTRIES AT DOG SHOWS

I see the Kennel Club has started consultation
with interested parties as to why entries are falling dramatically at
their Championship dog shows. The figures in my own breed, Rottweilers,
make very interesting reading, with entries at some major shows falling
towards levels not seen since the very early days of the breed in this
country. There can be many reasons for this. The recession, rising fuel
costs, judges who are not respected for their record of putting up
friends dogs, the docking ban or simply a case of the hobby lacking the
appeal it once had. Certainly, the entries in the late 80’s early 90’s
were much higher than today, despite that being a time of record
interest rates and property repossession. Registration figures for the
breed are also well down on its heydays of the 80’s and 90’s.In Rottweilers and other breeds, falling entries will inevitably lead to
a poorer standard of Champion dog and dogs getting stud book numbers
which they wouldn’t have got in the recent past, when entries were much
higher. This clearly might lead to poorer quality puppies from inferior
breeding stock, time will tell.